Among Germans

Published by admin on 17 June 2023

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Odeon Theatre presents
on Wednesday, 20 November 2019, at 19h00, at Studio Hall
within the European project

FABULAMUNDI. PLAYWRITING EUROPE
the reading performance

AMONG GERMANS
by Azar Mortazavi (Austria)

translation Elise Wilk
directed by Bobi Pricop
music Eduard Gabia
cast: Virginia Rogin, Sabrina Iașchevici, Meda Victor și Cezar Antal

The reading performance is followed by a debate on the theme of migration, moderated by Mihaela Michailov

FREE ENTRANCE

A foreign man with a beard. A young dark-haired woman with a German passport. A lonely neighbour who only means well. A sad old woman who transforms her fear into anger one last time.

Among Germans is an impressive demonstration of how quickly we can turn into strangers, how we become mute if what is most important remains unsaid and what has been said metastasises inside our heads, turning neighbours into suspects and people into categories.

In Mortazavi’s text every fragile bond of intimacy that its characters awkwardly attempt to form dissolves into misunderstanding.

Among Germans was premiered at the Residenztheater in Munich, at the beginning of the year 2019.

My idealistic theatre doesn’t present certainties, doesn’t repeat stereotypes, but tells personal stories, creates figures and characters with all their ambivalences, so that we can forget all the separating labels and prejudices and find the common grounds. (Azar Mortazavi)

Azar Mortazavi was born in Wittlich/Rhineland Palatinate and studied Creative Writing and Arts Journalism in Hildesheim. In 2008 she took part in the international Festival Of Young European Playwrights in Utrecht. For her play ‘Todesnachricht’ (“Death Notice”) (world premiere 2011 Pfalztheater Kaiserslautern) she was awarded the Else Lasker-Schüler Playwriting Prize for 2010. In 2011 her short play ‘Himmel und Hölle’ (“Heaven and Hell”) was invited to the inaugural Karlsruhe Playwriting Festival at the Baden State Theatre in Karslruhe. In 2012 she was awarded the WIENER WORTSTAETTEN’s Exile Dramatist Prize. With her second play ‘Ich wünsch mir eins’ (“I have one wish”) (world premiere 2012, Theater Osnabrück, director: Annette Pullen) Azar Mortazavi was invited to the Mülheimer Theatertagen and the Autorentheatertagen Berlin 2013. In 2014 ‘Urteile’ (“Judgements”), a documentary theatre project about the victims of the NSU in Munich created in collaboration with the director Christine Umpfenbach, was premiered at the Residenztheater in Munich.

Her play ‘Zwischenzeit’ (“Meantime”), a WIENER WORTSTAETTEN commission, received its world premiere in 2014 at the Nestroyhof Hamakom Theatre in Vienna. Azar Mortazavi‘s work with the Ballhaus Naunynstraße has concluded the stage adapation of Aboud Saeed’s ‘The Cleverest Person on Facebook’. She was also responsible for the text of the youth play ‘Revolution of Colour’, based on the novel ‘Kara Günlük – Sesperado’s Secret Diaries’ by Mutlu Ergün-Hamaz. This play was invited to the 2017 Theatertreffen der Jugend.

Bobi Pricop is one of the most successful young directors and in 2017 was included on the nominees list for Europe Prize Theatrical Realities.

He graduated the National Theatre and Film University (UNATC), Bucharest – theatre directing section in 2011 and Master studies in 2013.
He directed the following performances: Terror by Ferdinand von Schirach at National theatre in Tg Mureș (2018), The Author by Tim Crouch at National Theatre ”Marin Sorescu” in Craiova, UFO by Ivan Vîrîpaev at TNB, The War has not yet started by Mihail Durnenkov at ”Toma Caragiu” Theatre in Ploiești (2017), An Oak Tree by Tim Crouch at Youth Theatre in Piatra Neamț, The tiger of our town by Gianina Cărbunariu at ”Matei Vișniec” Theatre in Suceava (2017), Kepler-438b by Guillem Clua at Odeon Theatre, The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time based on Mark Haddon at the National Theatre in Bucharest (2016) for which he was nominated at Uniter Award for best director and received Best director Award and Best Performance Award at the Short Theatre Festival in Oradea, The Green Cat by Elise Wilk at “Luceafărul” Theatre in Iaşi (2015), for which he was nominated at Uniter Award for best director and received the Excellence Award at Impuls Festival, Bucharest. Ashes Afar by Andreea Borţun at Vanner Company, Edinburgh Fringe (2015) awarded with Best Performance Prize, Best Actress and Best Dramaturgy Prizeat Bucharest Fringe Festival; Illusions by Ivan Vîrîpaev at National Theatre “Marin Sorescu” in Craiova (2015), The Ritual Slaughter of Gorge Mastromas by Dennis Kelly at “Regina Maria” Theatre in Oradea (2015), Against Love by Esteve Soler at Youth Theatre in Piatra Neamţ (2014), The Religion Teacher by Mihaela Michailov, at National Theatre “Marin Sorescu” in Craiova (2013), awarded with Audience Prize (II Place) at Drama Bienale „New plays from Europe” in Wiesbaden (Germany), Best Director Award at Short Theatre Festival, Oradea (2014), Best Director Award at “Excelsior Teenfest”, Bucharest, Special Prize of the Jury at National Comedy Festival, Galați (2015); Amalia respire profondèment by Alina Nelega at Theatre Les Déchargeurs din Paris (2013), Against Progress by Esteve Soler at “ L.S. Bulandra” Theatre in Bucureşti (2013), Humpty Dumpty by Eric Bogosian at Classic Theatre “Ioan Slavici” in Arad (2011). He made his debut with Games in the Backyard by Edna Mazya, graduation show UNATC, taken over by Act Theatre in Bucharest (2011), awarded with Best Director Prize, Best Actor and Best Actress Prize at the Graduation Gala UNATC (2011), Best Director Award at Independent Theatre Festival “Undercloud” Bucharest, Best Director Award at Short Theatre Festival, Oradea (2012).

In 2019 he will be the chief organizer of Theatre Networking Talents, an international festival for young directors, organized by Marin Sorescu National Theatre in Craiova.

Fabulamundi Playwriting Europe: Beyond Borders? is a cooperation project among theatres, festivals and cultural organizations from 10 EU Countries (Italy, France, Germany, Spain, Romania, Austria, Belgium, UK, Poland and Czech Republic). The network aims to support and promote the contemporary playwriting across Europe, in order to reinforce and enhance the activities and strategies of the professionals and artists working in the sector and to provide the theatre authors and professionals with opportunities of networking, multicultural encounter and professional development.

In the frame of this project, Odeon Theatre has presented between 2012 – 2016 eight reading performances from the dramaturgy of all the partner countries. The translated plays were published in 2015 and 2016 in the volumes Italian contemporary drama and European contemporary drama, at Cheiron Publishing House and Cultural Foundation „Camil Petrescu”.

Kepler-438b was the first performance produced within this project. During this third edition, Odeon Theatre presented three reading performances: Lullaby by Erika Galli and Martina Ruggeri (Italy), Sadness and Melancholy by Bonn Park (Germany), You say tomato by Joan Yago (Spain) and two productions: Gardenia by Elzbieta Chowaniec (Poland) and For Your Own Good by Pier Lorenzo Pisano (Italy), both directed by Zoltán Balázs (Hungary).

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